Christianity is the most widely professed religion in Croatia, representing 87.4% of the total population. A large majority of the Croats declare themselves to be members of the Catholic Church.
Croatia has no official religion and freedom of religion is a right defined by the country's Constitution, which also defines all religious communities as equal before the law and separate from the state.[1]
In the 16th century, Protestantism reached Croatia, but was mostly eradicated due to the Counter-Reformation implemented by the Habsburgs.
There is also significant history of the Jews in Croatia through the Holocaust. The history of the Jews in Croatia dates back to at least the 3rd century, although little is known of the community until the 10th and 15th centuries. By the outbreak of World War II, the community numbered approximately 20,000[2] members, most of whom were murdered during the Holocaust that took place on the territory of the Nazi puppet state called Independent State of Croatia. After World War II, half of the survivors chose to settle in Israel, while an estimated 2,500 members continued to live in Croatia.[3] According to the 2011 census, there were 509 Jews living in Croatia, but that number is believed to exclude those born of mixed marriages or those married to non-Jews. More than 80 percent of the Zagreb Jewish community were thought to fall in those two categories.
According to the 2021 census 78.97% of residents residing in Croatia are Catholics, while Orthodox Christians make up 3.32% of the population, Muslims 1.32%, and Protestants 0.26% of the population. 6.39% of Croatians are not religious, atheists or agnostics and 3.86% are undeclared.
| Religion | 2011 | 2021[4] | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | % | Number | % | ||
| 3,914,900 | 91.34 | 3,383,046 | 87.39 | ||
| 3,697,143 | 86.26 | 3,057,043 | 78.97 | ||
| 190,143 | 4.44 | 128,305 | 3.32 | ||
| 14,653 | 0.34 | 9,956 | 0.26 | ||
| — Other Christians | 12,961 | 0.30 | 186,960 | 4.84 | |
| 62,977 | 1.47 | 50,981 | 1.32 | ||
| 536 | 0.01 | 573 | 0.02 | ||
| Eastern religions | 2,550 | 0.06 | 3,392 | 0.09 | |
| Other religions | 2,555 | 0.06 | 37,066 | 0.96 | |
| 195,893 | 4.57 | 247,149 | 6.39 | ||
| Undeclared/Unknown | 105,478 | 2.46 | 149,626 | 3.86 | |
| Total | 4,284,889 | 100.00% | 3,871,833 | 100.00% | |
Public schools allow religious teaching in cooperation with religious communities having agreements with the state, but attendance is not mandated. Religion classes (Croatian: vjeronauk) are organized widely in public elementary and secondary schools, most commonly coordinated with the Catholic Church.
The public holidays in Croatia also include the religious festivals (Croatian: blagdan) of Epiphany, Easter Monday, Corpus Christi Day, Assumption Day, All Saints' Day, Christmas, and St. Stephen's or Boxing Day. The primary holidays are based on the Catholic liturgical year, but other believers are legally allowed to celebrate other major religious holidays.
Marriages conducted by the religious communities having agreements with the state are officially recognized, eliminating the need to register the marriages in the civil registry office. The Catholic Church in Croatia receives state financial support and other benefits established in concordats between the Government and the Vatican. The concordats and other government agreements with non-Catholic religious communities allow state financing for some salaries and pensions for religious officials through government-managed pension and health funds.[5]
The concordats and agreements also regulate public school catechisms and military chaplains.[5]
In line with the concordats signed with the Roman Catholic Church and in an effort to further define their rights and privileges within a legal framework, the government has additional agreements with the following 14 religious and Faith communities:[5] [6]
See main article: Freedom of religion in Croatia. The 2002 Law on the Legal Position of Religious Communities broadly defines religious and Faith communities' legal positions and covers such matters as government funding, tax benefits, and religious education in schools. Matters such as pensions for clergy; religious service in the military, penitentiaries, and police; and recognition of religious and Faith marriages are left to each religious and Faith community to negotiate separately with the Government.[5]
Registration of religious groups is not obligatory; however, registered groups are granted "legal person" status and enjoy tax and other benefits. The law stipulates that to be eligible for registration, a religious group must have at least 500 believers and be registered as an association for 5 years. All religious and Faith groups in the country prior to passage of the law in 2002 were registered without having to meet these conditions; religious and Faith groups new to the country after passage of the law must fulfill the requirements for the minimum number of believers and time as an association. Religious and Faith groups based abroad must submit written permission for registration from their country of origin.[5] Minister of Public Administration runs a Registry of religious organizations in Republic of Croatia, currently recognizing 62 religious communities .[7]
In 2023, the country was scored 3 out of 4 for religious freedom.[8]